According to the American Dental Association, a major source of bad breath in healthy people is microbial deposits on the tongue, where a bacterial coating harbors organisms and debris that contribute to bad breath. One particular spot on the tongue that harbors significant quantities of odor-causing bacteria is the back of the tongue. The tongue is a haven for the growth of microorganisms since the papillary nature of the tongue surface creates a unique ecological site that provides an extremely large surface area, favoring the accumulation of oral bacteria. Anaerobic flora and bacteria residing on the tongue play an important role in the development of chronic bad breath commonly called halitosis. In general, the bacteria produce volatile sulfur compounds (VSC). If there is enough buildup of the sulfur compounds, the result can be lead bad breath or oral malodor. There is also evidence supporting the breath freshening benefits of cleansing cheek surfaces to remove dead skin cells, which ultimately will settle on the tongue surface becoming a source of protein for a host of odor causing bacteria.
Consequently, tissue cleansers have been added to a face of the head of a conventional toothbrush opposite the face on which the tooth cleaning elements are positioned. Adding a tissue cleanser increases the head height of the brush. Using a conventional toothbrush having tooth cleaning elements and a tissue cleanser to clean the back of the tongue often results in the gag reflex due to inadvertent contact with the back of the throat, due to the increased head height of the brush. This increase in head height also negatively affects the tooth cleaning efficacy of the brush, making brush head access to hard to reach areas, such as the buccal surfaces of the third molars, difficult due to restricted access between cheeks and teeth. Previous efforts seen in the art to improve oral access have typically focused on the “head size”, as evidenced by the offering of “compact”, and even “ultra-compact”head sizes. These smaller head sizes have in fact only focused on reducing the length and width of the brush head, and have ignored the overall brush head height, the primary restriction in accessing tight buccal spaces, and primary cause of the gag reflex when cleansing the back of the tongue.
It would be desirable to provide a toothbrush with tooth cleaning elements and a tissue cleanser that reduces or overcomes some or all of the difficulties inherent in prior known devices. Particular objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art, that is, those who are knowledgeable or experienced in this field of technology, in view of the following disclosure of the invention and detailed description of certain embodiments.